Ninjas: The changing tides
by Devilfrog
Summary: The revamp of Ninjas:red and blue. Alex is beaten and broken, having lost all her family apart from her abusive father. But on the night she is given the new ninja mask, Alex becomes Shadow, and promises to turn her life around. (RandyXOC, rated T for angst, gore, character death, drugs, alcohol and abuse.)


Ninjas: Changing tides

**DISCLAIMER: Don't own RC9GN, cause if I did it would already be a major motion picture! YEEE-YAAA! **

**AN: All of my old ninja series (which I was going to delete) got so much attention (though not many ****_REVIEWS_****) I decided I shouldn't just leave you here. So, throw the old series out of your head-box, because it's time for the new one! With more angst, feels, romance, action, plot, drama and better grammar! (Why am I so excited about grammar? Weird.) I'll forget to add this at the end, so please review!**

**Chapter one: The change I want**

The wind howled and rain poured. Alex, who was starting at Norrisville High next Monday, dragged her suitcase up the rickety stairs of the old house. With a lump in her throat and cold fire in her broken heart, she unlocked the door of her grandfather's old house. Her eyes stung, whether from dust or salty tears, she didn't know, as she case her gaze over the familiar room. She had loved him dearly, the only adult in her life who cared about her, and didn't hit her, and wanted her to do well in life. To have come into this house, to have seen his cold body laying peacefully at the bottom of the stairs, to have heard Alex's howls of grief and pain, would break even the strongest of souls, and Alex felt her heart break all over again. Hot tears of fresh pain welled from her eyes, further smearing her eyeliner, but she couldn't bring herself to even wipe them away.

All that had kept her clinging to life had left her. What was there to hold her now? Who was there? Her dead mother? Her drug-addicted, abusive father? No. She cared for her father, it felt like a dagger in the heart when ever he stumbled through the back door, delirious from substance abuse. It hurt more on the inside than the out when he hit her, told her she was worthless, told her he'd like to see _her_ body laying dead on the ground. She could remember the days when her mother was still with them, and the three of them would go to the park and play, every day. Then suddenly, mom was gone, and so was dad. Turned sour by the loss of the woman he loved. Alex couldn't bare to think about that day. Watching her mother be killed before her eyes had scarred Alex for life, but she had sworn, from that day forewords, that she would never hurt a living soul, unless in self-defence.

Alex dragged her luggage up the staircase, her wrecked converse scuffing the wooden floor of the landing as she made her way into the guest room she had grown to regard as her own. A sudden rush of anger, and she threw the suitcase across the room, it clattered against the wall.

"**ALEX?!**" Mr. Millburn screamed furiously, Alex winced in fear nut didn't reply. The tension left her body when she didn't hear his heavy footsteps on the stairs. She sat down on the bed, allowing the cold, dull pain of loss, grief and fear to take her over and fill her entire being. Hot saltwater streamed down her cheeks once more. She curled up on the bed, her entire body aching with physical pain and pure concentrated misery. And soon enough, the tears stopped, her ragged breath lightened, and Alex fell into a fitful slumber.

The blond teen awoke to her shutters banging together. Luckily, it hadn't awoken her father, who'd probably passed out on the floor. Alex opened her deep blue orbs, scanning the room blearily. A small wooden box lay on her nightstand. It had _not_ been there before. Alex sat up, still in her day clothes, and slid her slender legs over the side of the bed, sitting up among duvet-nest she'd built in her sleep. The box was dark hardwood, a square blue spiral painted on the top, the clasp had similar design, and smaller spirals spread around the sides of the box in chains.

Alex brushed her left hand over it gently, a soft smile gracing her tear stained face. There was something special about this object, she thought as she allowed her hand to rest flat upon it's wooden lid. A strange feeling spread over her, like a gentle soothing breeze, cleansing her body of it's physical pain and bringing her a clarity she hadn't felt for years. Her eyes slid shut as the many bruises on her arms began to heal, the cuts, from broken glass, on her feet and ankles sealed up and disappeared. All her injuries, new and old, cleansed in a moment by this tiny wooden box. Alex was desperate to open it, what could be held within such a wonderful, powerful container. But she would savour this rare moment of happiness and clarity, emotions she could rarely have. Opening her eyes, Alex ghosted her thumb over the small silver latch on the box. Steeling herself and gathering all the nerve she had left, Alex pushed up the latch, pulling open the box with it.

Inside it, there was a soft black fabric trimmed with royal blue. It was soft to the touch, like down feathers, or soft fur, or woven clouds. Carefully, delicately, as though she was afraid of hurting it, the enthralled teen lifted it out of the box. The fabric proved to be a mask, with an adjoined eye hole which was highlighted in royal blue, four sharp lines breaking off. Two led to where the cheeks of the wearer would be, the other pair stretched around to the back of the head, to a hole with a hair tie around it, presumably where long hair was to be tied back.

Unable to help herself, Alex gripped the soft fabric and pulled it on to her face. There was a blinding flash and long black tendrils of fabric whipped out of the mask and rushed Alex's body. She panicked, flailing her limbs and running across the room. Running on adrenalin and no longer caring about noise, she threw herself behind the bed. She sat frozen for a few minutes, before realising that she was fine. Alive and weirdly comfortable.

"Woah..." Alex looked down at herself. Her gently curved figure was now clad in soft black fabric, a length of flowing blue cloth tied around her waist and hanging down, a scarf of the same material around her neck, royal blue highlights decorating her wrists, ankles and torso. Her whole body felt stronger, lighter, faster, _better._ Alex flexed her hands, surprised that the fabric didn't restrict her movements.

One thing Alex had always wanted to try was a back flip. And she was getting a feeling that she could do it if she tried now. She was pretty sure that was teenage stupidity, but she wasn't about to pass up this opportunity. Her steady heart beat slowed, her body was still, focusing and honing in on the feet, scanning the basic schematics of the move. Freezing up her joints, Alex propelled herself into the air as high as she could, twisting backwards and landing crouched on the floor, her legs bent and feet wide apart for stability, arms out for balance.

_Oh my cheese. What __**is**__ this?! It's amazing, but that can't be it. There's always a catch. Always. __**Always**__._

Alex looked back to the box, searching for said catch. In the bottom of the box was a note, written in a messy scrawl.

"**_You are the shadow._**

**_You are silent._**

**_You are patient._**

**_You have focus and inner strength that no other could achieve._**

**_You cannot tell anyone. _**

**_You must protect the lives of those you have been charged with,_**

**_From the moment you don this mask you are the guardian of this sacred place._**

**_You are unique,_**

**_Without equal in this world or the next._**

**_You are the shadow, as you have always been._**

**_Good luck_**_._"

And on the back, written in the uneven scribbles of another teenager,

**_Hi new bro! You got the package, right? Cool. You probably think there's something pretty wonk going on, that's cool, so did I. Meet me on top of Norrisville High at 6pm on Monday if you want the deets, or if you don't._**

**_Hope to see you there,_**

**-****_The Ninja._**

Alex stared at the piece of paper, contemplating whether or not it was a good idea to follow the orders on it. On one hand, you shouldn't meet with people you've never met, who could be trying to rape you or something. On the other, no weirdo-rapist would be able to do all _this_. It was clear to Alex that there was a higher power at work. So she decided she would. She would meet The Ninja on the roof at six Tomorrow.

Alex removed the mask, marvelling at how the strips of fabric retreated back into it, before crawling back into bed and pulling the covers over her.

_Thanks, mom, if you are up there with the big guy in white. Thank you for giving me this chance. I __**promise**__ you, I'm going to turn my life around._

**AN: Sorry for starting on such a low, but I though Alex, who was a bit of a Mary-sue, needed more gravity in her character. I've never written anything that angst-y before, was it okay? I'm not gonna lie, I almost cried when I wrote it. **

**Alex and Randy are gonna meet soon. Will it be love at first sight, or will Alex freak out? Read on to find out!**

**Next chapter: The change I need**

**_-Devilfrog._**


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